Voice-leading Spread Triads

In order to really understand and make use of the spread triads, it’s necessary to apply them to real music.

Let’s take the common chord progression, “I IV vi V”, and voice lead it using the spread triads.

From D Major, Root Position

D^maj – I

G^maj – IV

B- – vi

A^maj – V

From D Major, 1^st inversion

D^maj – I

G^maj – IV

B- – vi

A^maj – V

From D Major, 2^nd inversion

D^maj – I

G^maj – IV

B- – vi

A^maj – V

Key Exercises

• Learn, memorize, and apply the spread triads.
• Pick a new chord progression and voice lead it. Check out this Chord Progression Chart if you’re looking for a place to start.